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Immigration Judges Quitting In Protest; Top Sports Stories Of The Year; Linda Ronstadt Is A Musical Legend In Her Own Time. Aired 3:30-4p ET
Aired December 27, 2019 - 15:30 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[15:30:00]
JESSICA DEAN, CNN HOST: "The Post" ranks that Republican Leader Mitch McConnell is pushing Pompeo into a Senate bid out of fear the G.O.P. might lose that seat.
Now, this month, Pompeo began posting on a second personal Twitter account with a Kansas setting as his cover picture.
Immigration judges quitting in protest, so many angry about the President's new policies. What the judges are saying about why they had no other choice, but to walk away.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[15:35:45]
DEAN: CNN has learned an unprecedented number of immigration judges have resigned or changed jobs because of President Trump's ever changing immigration policies. Double the number of judges have left or moved into new roles within the immigration courts system compared to the last two fiscal years.
Priscilla Alvarez, CNN politics reporter has the reporting on all of this. And Priscilla, you talked to a lot of these judges, what are they telling you about why they left?
PRISCILLA ALVAREZ, CNN POLITICS REPORTER: So each of them really had their own set of reasons as to why they left, but there was one theme that really tied them all together, and that was frustration with the series of policy changes that they said we're chipping away at their authority.
Now, that frustration really did come through in those interviews. There was one immigration judge that told me quote, "It was intolerable." Another who said she just isn't going to be a part of it anymore. It being the destruction of what she thought was the immigration court system.
And so these changes just really wore down on many of these judges and I want to note, change is not unusual for immigration judges. They are employees of the Justice Department, and so they are charged with executing on the administration's policies. They've had to adapt to each administration and their policies and
priorities, but one judge who has been there for decades said he never seen anything like this. And that's because many of these policy changes that have come out under the Trump administration have dictated how they handle their dockets, or they thought curtailed their authority. And that just didn't sit well with many of them.
And it was, quote, "insulting" in some cases. And really, it's what compelled them to leave.
DEAN: All right, some great reporting for us there. Priscilla Alvarez. Thanks so much.
ALVAREZ: Thank you.
DEAN: 2019 has been an historic year in a lot of ways. When we come back, we'll count down the top sports stories of the year. See if your team made the cut.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: There was no shortage of historic sporting events in 2019. CNN's Andy Scholes has a look back at the biggest moments of the year.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDY SCHOLES, CNN SPORTS REPORTER: From dominant performances to controversy to come backs, this past year had it all when it comes to sports.
Here's a look at our top nine moments in 2019, and we start with a single tweet that rocked the NBA.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: The NBA is standing up for free speech and behind Houston Rockets General Manager, Daryl Morey.
DAVID CULVER, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The fallout has been huge.
ALISYN CAMEROTA, CNN ANCHOR: Chinese businesses are cutting ties with the Rockets and the league.
JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST: China sports channel now says it will not broadcast any of the NBA games being held in China this week.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Before the start of the season, Houston Rockets General Manager, Daryl Morey tweeting support For Hong Kong's pro-democracy protesters, this caused a firestorm in China where the NBA is the most popular sports league.
Chinese officials condemning the tweet and response from Commissioner Adam Silver, the whole controversy greatly affecting the NBA's bottom line. (BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ADAM SILVER, NBA COMMISSIONER: We will have to live with those consequences.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Number eight, what were you doing when you were 15 years old? Well, Coco Gauff is capturing the hearts of sports fans everywhere with an incredible run at her first Wimbledon tournament.
Coco, youngest player to ever make the main draw at Wimbledon, she beat Venus Williams in her first match and advanced all the way to the fourth round before losing to the eventual champion, Simona Halep.
Number seven. Controversy on the track.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ANA CABRERA, CNN HOST: A stunning outcome at the Kentucky Derby.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The horse that crossed the finish line first did not win.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: The winner of the Kentucky Derby was disqualified. Maximum Security winning the race, but upon review was seen veering out of his lane.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He came out a little, but then I grabbed it right away. I stayed straight, you know.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Country House was declared the winner at odds of 65 to one. Country House had the second longest odds than any Kentucky Derby winner.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Did that really just happen?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: Number six. On January 3rd, 2019, the St. Louis Blues had the worst record in the NHL, but that's when they turned it around.
The Blues' season culminating with them beating the Boston Bruins in game seven of the Stanley Cup Finals to win their first ever championship. And Blues super fan Laila Anderson, an 11-year-old battling a life-threatening autoimmune disease was an inspiration for the team all season and she got to celebrate with the team on the ice after they hoisted the Stanley Cup. Number five. 2019 was a year of more controversy for the NFL.
[15:45:07]
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was simple. They blew the call.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Easy call for sure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's tough. Tough to swallow.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: The Saints were robbed of a chance to play in Super Bowl 53 when the refs failed to call pass interference.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Worst call in history. I feel like somebody just robbed my house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Honestly.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They didn't throw flag.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The guy has to be blind.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: The NFL responded by making pass interference reviewable for the next season.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It doesn't help us at all. It's too late.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: The New England Patriots, meanwhile, beat the Los Angeles Rams in the Super Bowl making Tom Brady the first player in NFL history to win six rings.
Number four. Finally, something everyone in Washington, D.C. could agree on. That's cheering on the Nationals. The team taking their fans on a miraculous run in the postseason. And for the first time ever, the road team winning every game in the World Series. The Nationals beating the Astros in seven games to win their first ever title.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I hope they're ready for a party because we're coming home.
(END VIDEO CLIP) SCHOLES: Number three. It was an emotional year for Simone Biles as
she opened up about being one of the victims of Dr. Larry Nassar and the failure of USA Gymnastics to intervene.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SIMONE BILES, U.S. GYMNAST: We've done everything that they asked us for even when we didn't want to and they couldn't do one damn job. You had one job. You literally have one job and you didn't protect us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: In spite of the controversy, the 22-year-old dominating the World Championships to become the most decorated gymnast ever.
Number two, the U.S. women's national team capturing the hearts and minds of people everywhere with their efforts on and off the field.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BALDWIN: The U.S. thoroughly dominant so far.
DAVE BRIGGS, CNN HOST: The U.S. women's soccer team rewriting the record books.
CHRISTINE BRENNAN, SPORTS COLUMNIST, USA TODAY: This couldn't have been a bigger story.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: As the team took on opponents in the World Cup, they were battling the U.S. Soccer Federation in their fight to be compensated the same as their male counterparts.
The team winning their second consecutive World Cup title beating the Netherlands two to zero in the final, with fans chanting equal pay.
The women's equal pay lawsuit now looks like it's headed for a trial in 2020 as the team prepares to take the field in the Tokyo Summer Games.
And finally the number one sports story on our list from 2019. Tiger Woods was back on top of the sports world winning the Masters.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN HOST: Breaking news. Tiger Woods is donning the green jacket once again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tiger Woods has made a fairy tale comeback worthy of the silver screen.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It is an extraordinary comeback.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The greatest comeback ever. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Tiger Woods is back.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SCHOLES: It was Tiger's first win in a major since the 2008 U.S. Open after multiple knee and back surgeries. Many didn't know if Tiger would ever win major number 15. But the 43-year-old won the Masters in dramatic fashion making his first ever final round comeback in a major.
Tiger shared the incredible moment with his 10-year-old son, Charlie.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
DEAN: Great stuff. NBA superstar LeBron James helped deliver a Christmas wish for a teenager with cancer. Seventeen-year-old Corey Graves is a lifelong Lakers fan and for Christmas, the teenagers traveled to Los Angeles with dreams of meeting his idol, and during the team's pregame walkthrough, he got to pose with LeBron James and shake his hand.
A Toronto Raptors super fan had worked behind the scenes to make sure that teenager's Christmas dream came true.
The candidates are back on the campaign trail after the holiday break. Coming up why the Bernie Sanders team says he is being underestimated in Iowa.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
DEAN: Linda Ronstadt is a musical legend in her own time. She has 10 Grammys, 11 platinum albums and is the first artist to simultaneously top the pop, country and R&B charts.
Now, the new CNN film, " Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice" tells the inside story of Ronstadt's meteoric rise to fame and my colleague Brooke Baldwin talked with a friend of Linda Ronstadt, singer musician and songwriter, Jackson Browne.
BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN HOST: Ten Grammys, 11 platinum albums and the first artists to simultaneously top the pop, country and R&B charts. Linda Ronstadt is a musical legend all in her own time and now, a new CNN film, "Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of My Voice" tells the inside stories for her meteoric rise to fame, exploring every genre from rock to opera, and amassing a devoted following of millions of fans.
Here's a preview.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Linda was able to be really feminine and sexy in this world of men and somehow hold on to yourself and do that, and use that in the best possible way.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There was a lot of dudes running around the stages then, you know, but we were on the road with Linda and killed it. She was killing every night.
LINDA RONSTADT, AMERICAN SINGER: I know they liked my singing and I know they were proud of what they were doing. But still in rock and roll, the idea that you're actually working for a chick singer in their way they sort of saw it as not as cool as if they were their own rock and roll band and they were just all the guys.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
[15:55:07]
BALDWIN: Joining me now singer, musician, songwriter, friend of Linda Ronstadt, Jackson Browne.
Jackson, a pleasure and honor to talk to you. You say in this film that, you know when you toured with Linda, that you would alternate who opened each night because you didn't want to have to follow her every night. Talk to me about that and why was she such a powerful performer?
JACKSON BROWNE, SINGER-SONGWRITER: Well, she was just -- she just was. She was a force of nature. She was so beautiful and powerful in a very relaxed way.
I mean, the agreement was to open alternately, it's just that every time I had to follow, it was, you know, it was hard to do. I felt much more comfortable opening for her, but then it always irons itself out with the audience, eventually. I mean, you have people are there, too, but it's just a physical -- a physical challenge to follow somebody as powerful and as graceful as Linda, and as magnetic, you know.
BALDWIN: What was her special sauce?
BROWNE: her power for singing, but also her charm. You know, I would watch her in the sound check, she didn't like the sound check, and she would just be wearing jeans and a hoodie or something and look staring at the rug.
And yet when she came out to sing, she just gave this wonderful exuberant -- this, you know, very sexy and relaxed, this feminine charm. It's very funny to hear her use the term chick singer.
I think she might have been ironic even at the time.
BALDWIN: Why?
BROWNE: Oh, because that was -- no, that was the parlance of the day. That's what people said in those days and you know, not only -- we were all just abusive of the term chick, eventually, throughout time, but also as a generational thing.
BALDWIN: And then just even outside of the musical realm, she like you have been so outspoken. You know, you've been an activist on so many social issues. I know you, Jackson, recently traveled to the U.S.-Mexico border
together. Can you tell me why you went and what you make of the whole situation down there?
BROWNE: It was actually to a small town in Sonora that her father was born in -- no, her grandfather was born in and that has been a sort of family, you know, I mean, it's been -- maybe they've made many trips to Banachimi, which is, you know, it's a beautiful pristine little town in Sonora and she has made many trips there.
The thing is Linda is -- you know, she is from a Mexican-American family. She was born in Tucson and her father was Mexican. You know, her family. She is Mexican. So she doesn't need to go to the border to know what's going on. I believe she has traveled to the border itself, the situation there. We had to cross the border to go on this trip and we saw this concertina wire, this sort of affront to, you know, the, the communities on both sides of the border.
This theatrical gimmicky portrayal of the border as a war zone, when in fact, the border at Nogales has been, you know, peaceful and orderly crossing point for people for generations and people cross the border every day to come to work and and/or to sell their goods or to, you know, there's commerce with Mexico.
So what's going on, I mean, I could talk to you but what I think is going on, I haven't really spoken to Linda about the border situation recently, but you know, I think that her desire to make that trip, to take her friends and to visit the town that her grandfather was born in was -- it was a really heartfelt desire to illuminate the discussion about immigration in our country and portray immigrants with the respect that they deserve.
BALDWIN: No, I just -- we're thrilled to honor her and to help tell her story, you know, here at CNN. And I just want to tell everyone, it's "Linda Ronstadt: The Sound of my Voice." This film premieres New Year's Day, 9:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific only here on CNN.
Jackson Browne. You have been phenomenal. Thank you.
DEAN: And don't forget to ring in the New Year with Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen. Two best friends, one epic night. It's New Year's Eve Live. It begins at 8:00 p.m. right here on CNN.
I want to thank you so much for joining me this afternoon. Erica Hill is filling in for Jake Tapper on "The Lead." It starts right now.
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